Learn from my experience How to achieve a better relationship with fashion consumption habits. Be more environmentally aware and feel better about your choices.
Fashion for me is one of my biggest forms of self-expression and creative explorations. Without it I would feel limited and yet it is important to maintain a healthy balance in several aspects. Both mentally and environmentally.
My family and friends have similar very similar closets and shopping habits, which the fact that our clothes don’t look different from each other is the first sign of not questioning the ideals of beauty and style set by companies. The matter always boils down to making money, through which big brands set as the main goal to sell as many things as fast as possible. We, the costumers, usually fall into their traps. Even I have had the same kind of fashion spending habits as many people, but for years now I have been evolving and trying to make better decisions with the clothes I choose to wear.
My style is very casual and put together at the same time. With similar silhouettes but I can offer variety and still go a little further with accessories if I want to. I have several basic jeans or pants that I have worn so so many times. With those pants I combine the tops. Most of my tops are plain, and I’m not going to lie most of my items are black, but some of them have patterns. The top is from where I start my outfit and I have good quality pieces each with a different feature for a specific occasion, and I still have less than twenty tops. Then jackets I have as many as I truly need, I don’t buy any jacket that follows a trend, but because they serve a purpose in my life. Then I have less than ten shoes, including trainers. Although it would be amazing to have more cool looking shoes and more edgy, I really don’t need any more. Reading back it seems like my style is boring and all my outfits look the same. But you will be surprised to hear that it is possible to be fashionable and refreshing with limited space in your closet. So take notes.
Some of the unspoken rules that I have either made for myself or adopted towards making more environmentally and overall more respectful practices are the following:
Only but an item if I love it 100%. This has been fairly easy to implement and has for sure been effective in cutting down the amount of clothes that I buy. Even if I really like something, I now can admit that I don’t deeply love it and would get tired of it quickly.
If I get tired of something, change it up. When you have a clothing item that you know you aren’t going to wear anymore because it is boring or out of style, go on Pinterest and find a million ideas to customize it. That way it feels like you have acquired something new and you don’t feel bad about throwing away a perfectly good piece.
Repurpose old clothes. Finding a different use for a piece that is either broken, dirty, or you are simply tired of it. There are so many Pinterest DIY project that you could try. But usually what I do with an old t-shirt is use it as a cloth for painting.
Get your clothes fixed if broken. Im tired of having items in your closet that you cant use because they need to be repaired, or made bigger or smaller. Stop. Breathe. And go to a shop to get them fixed. Immediately. No more waiting.
Donate. Of course, a very valid option is donating the clothes that you know you wont wear again but are in a good state. However, make sure that your donation center is providing those clothes to communities or people in need, and not reselling them to vintage shops or markets in other underdeveloped countries. Just make sure that they are serving a good purpose. Ask. Do research. Or resell them if you need the money. But what matters is that they live a second life.
Buy from ethical sources. When purchasing new clothes, please make sure that they come from an environmentally balanced process, That the materials are natural and that the carbon footprint is as low as possible. Of course, this is harder, mainly because those brands are usually more expensive. But if you can afford it, I highly recommend it. Another way is buying Vintage or second hand. Contribute to the clothes cycle and get clothes that have cool stories behind.
There are so many things I could discuss about fashion and so many approaches. The creative editorial side, the ethical and environmental, the history of marketing strategies and gender, etc. But I will leave those questions for a future conversation.
There are many ways to have a closet that feels balanced and responsible. What I have explained is how I achieve satisfaction with my choices, but everyone is different and Im sure we all have different methods to get there. Now that I have revealed all my secrets, perhaps you would like to try one or two, or perhaps leave in the comments section what works for you. This way we can all learn to live a more sustainable life.
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